10 Fascinating Facts About Personality

Personality makes us who we are. It influences nearly every aspect of our lives, from what we
choose to do for a living to how we interact with our families to our choices of friends and
romantic partners. But what factors influence our personality? Can we change our
personalities, or do our overall traits remain constant throughout life? Learn more about
what researchers have learned in these ten fascinating facts about personality.
1. Birth Order Can Influence Your Personality
For decades, pop psychology books touted the effects of birth order on personality, but hard
evidence on the phenomenon remained elusive until recently. A few recent empirical studies
have found that such things as birth order and family size may indeed have an impact on
personality. One study even found that birth order can influence your choices of friends and
romantic partners; first-borns tend to associate with other first-borns, middle-borns with
other middle-borns and last-borns with last-borns.
2. Your Personality Is Relatively Stable throughout Life
According to researcher Paul T. Costa Jr., there is no evidence our overall personalities
change as we grow older. "What changes as you go through life are your roles and the issues
that matter most to you. People may think their personality has changed as they age, but it is
their habits that change, their vigor and health, their responsibilities and circumstances - not
their basic personality," he suggested in a New York Times article.
3. Personality Traits Are Linked to Certain Illnesses
Recently, researchers have used a statistical technique known as meta-analysis to reevaluate
previous research on the connection between personality and disease. What they discovered
were some previously unnoticed connections between neurotic personality traits and five
illnesses; headaches, asthma, arthritis, peptic ulcers and heart disease.
4. Animals Have Distinctive Personalities
Does it ever seem like your beloved pet has a personality that makes him utterly unique?
Animal researchers have found animals from nearly every species of animal (from spiders to
birds to elephants) have their own personalities with preferences, behaviors and quirks that
persist throughout life.
5. Current Research Suggests that there are Five Core Personality Traits
Early researchers such as Allport suggested that there were as many as 4,000 distinct
personality traits, while others such as Raymond Cattell proposed that there were 16. Today,
many personality researchers support the five-factor theory of personality, which describes
five broad personality dimensions that compose human
personality:extraversion,agreeableness,conscientiousness,neuroticism and openness
6. Personality Influences Personal Preferences
It may come as no shock to learn that your personality can have a profound effect on your
personal preferences, but you just might be surprised by how far reaching these effects may
be. From your choice of friends to your taste in music, your unique personality can influence
nearly every choice you make in your daily life.
One study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto found that individuals who
identified themselves as conservatives were higher in a personality trait called orderliness,
while those who self-identified as liberal were higher in empathy.
Researchers suggest that these underlying personality needs to either preserve order or
express empathy can have a strong influence on political preferences.
7. People Can Accurately Judge Your Personality Based on Your Facebook Profile
In the study, researchers looked at the online profiles of 236 U.S. college-aged individuals.
The participants also filled out questionnaires designed to measure personality traits
including extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness.
Observers then rated the personalities of the participants based on the online profiles, and
these observations were compared to the results of the personality questionnaires. The
researchers found that observers were able to get an accurate read on a person's personality
based on their Facebook profile.
8. Numerous Factors Can Contribute to Personality Disorders
An estimated 10 to 15% of adults in the United States experience symptoms of at least one
personality disorder. Researchers have identified a number of factors that may contribute to
the onset of different personality disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and
borderline-personality disorder.
9. Cardinal Traits Are Rare
For most people, personality is composed of a mixture of central and secondary traits.
Central traits are those that make up the core foundation of personality, while secondary
traits are those related to preferences, attitudes and situational behaviors.
10. Your Pet May Reveal Information About Your Personality
In a study of 4,500 people, researchers asked participants whether they considered
themselves to be more dog people or cat people. These individuals also completed a
personality survey that measured a number of broad traits including conscientiousness,
openness, neuroticism and agreeableness.
The researchers discovered that people who identified themselves as dog people tended to be
more extroverted and eager to please others, while those who described themselves as cat
people tended to be more introverted and curious.
http://psychology.about.com/od/personalitydevelopment/tp/facs-about-personality.htm

What are some characteristics of your personality?
What makes you happy?
What are some things that make you angry?
Are you happy with your personality?
Would you like to be different?
Are you a determined person?
Are you shy ? In which occasions are you shy?
Do you consider yourself selfish ? Why?
Is your personality suited to your job?
In what way has your personality changed? Why has it changed??
Are you more introverted (focused on your inner world) or more extraverted (focused
on other people and the outer world)?
Do you think you can change a major characteristic of your personality if you try?
Do you think you have an unusual personality? Why?
If you could change any aspect of your personality, what would it be?
What personality traits do you consider important in a good friend / a boss / a
partner?
What is one thing that many people don't know about you?
What expressions include colors and feelings? (ex. I feel blue, green with envy,black
circles under the eyes)
What do the colors in your home country's flag represent?
Do you think birth order makes a difference in your personality?